


Two of them- An Adoption

by IJustLikeToDream



Series: Two of Them [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Adopted Draco, Angst, Betrayal, Brotherly Love, Confident Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter are Brothers, Eventual Happy Ending, Family Secrets, Fluff, Godparent Severus Snape, Godparent Sirius Black, Hurt, Hurt Draco Malfoy, Hurt Harry Potter, Hurt/Comfort, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, James Potter Lives, Lily Evans Potter Lives, Lucius loves him too, Manipulative Albus Dumbledore, Minor Character Death, Multi, Narcissa Malfoy really does love her son, Nice Draco Malfoy, Powerful Draco Malfoy, Powerful Harry, Sad Ending, Slow Burn, Tags May Change, The Potters adopt Draco, This part of the series will have a sad ending but the end of the series will be happier
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-18
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-13 20:41:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29532126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IJustLikeToDream/pseuds/IJustLikeToDream
Summary: The Dark Lord had big plans for the newborn Malfoy Heir. Plans that Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy were more than happy to help bring to fruition... Until they learned about the price they had to pay: their son's soul.To save their boy, the Malfoys were ready to make the ultimate sacrifice. They abandoned the child to some of their Lord's worst enemy in exchange for information. Thus was born Daniel Potter, younger twin brother of Harry Potter, the One who lived.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy & Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy & James Potter, Draco Malfoy & Lily Evans Potter, Draco Malfoy & Severus Snape, Harry Potter & James Potter, Harry Potter & Lily Evans Potter, Harry Potter & Severus Snape, James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Lucius Malfoy/Narcissa Black Malfoy, Sirius Black & Draco Malfoy, Sirius Black & Harry Potter
Series: Two of Them [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2169585
Comments: 8
Kudos: 41





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> So. This is my first fic on the internet and the first part of a pet project series I've been working on. I... am a bit nervous, but hey! Everyone has to start somewhere, right? So I figured I would start with this one. Constructive criticism if you have any is welcomed and encouraged.
> 
> Now, this story happened because I was wondering: what if the Malfoys had a reason to betray the Dark Lord? What if they wanted to help the Potters survive for some reason? And this fanfic happened. The series will follow a main timeline and be cut in three main parts.  
> Maybe after that, there will be some mini fics about Harry and Draco's lives during and after the series (when they're children and when they're adults). If anyone is interested and has any ideas for bonus stories, they're welcome to tell me about them in the comments.
> 
> Obviously, I do not own any of the main characters or the world of Harry Potter, these belong to JK. Rowling. All I own are the plot and some original characters who may or may not be important to the story later on.
> 
> Hope you will enjoy reading it!

The nursery was dark and eerily quiet on that one night. Silently, Lucius passed a hand through his baby's hair one last time before walking out, promptly accompanied by a silhouette who looked exactly like his wife. Meanwhile, the real Narcissa stayed behind with their infant son and his personal house-elf, Sunny.

They were playing a dangerous game. Both Lucius and Narcissa were well aware of that, and yet, they would still do this. All this time, they've listened to the Dark Lord, bending to his every whim, foolishly believing that he would eventually lead them to glory. Win the war and bring even more honour and power to their entire family. That was, however, until he crossed a line.

The Dark Lord, one day, cornered the couple and told them that he wanted an heir. He explained that he was all too aware that he was not really immortal, and that one day, death would find a way to catch up to him despite all of his precautions. He'd need a successor to uphold his legacy. At first, it was an honour for the Malfoys to volunteer their newborn son for this significant role. They accepted without question when the Lord asked them to make him go through a ritual.

The ceremony occurred during the following full moon. It was painful for the infant, tremendously so. The poor thing was sick for weeks following the ceremony and left with hideous red puffy scars on his little chest. Narcissa wasn't sure if he would even survive the sickness, and he almost didn't. However, when he eventually did come out of it, he was more powerful. Changed to his very magical core, to his very roots.

  
The couple used to be thrilled to have their little one being such a notable element of the Dark Lord's plans! Even if they suffered for it, it was all worth it! That was until they realized what he really intended to do with their boy.

  
Bellatrix brought it up during a stroll in the gardens with Narcissa, one day. Her sister had talked about it without a care in the world as if it was the most natural thing. To this day, the words the younger spoke haunted the mother:

  
"So. How are you enjoying your last days with your little Hatchling?"

  
"What do you mean?" She'd asked, yet too naive at this point. Her companion had smiled, eyes shining and voice booming with excitement:

  
"Oh, Dearest Cissy! Weren't you told? Your son will have to be taken for preparation soon. His feeble body isn't yet fit to host our Lord's soul."

  
"What are you saying? Draco- he's meant to be our Lord's heir, isn't he?" Her voice had been weak, barely heard, her hands shaking and paling as it was quickly dawning on her that something else was happening.

  
"Narcissa? Oh no! My poor sister, you must have misunderstood! The Lord doesn't want an heir! My nephew will have the honour to become his vessel!" It took a very long time for Narcissa to fully process this new information. She was sure her heart had ceased to beat and shattered into dust when she finally did.

That very evening, she talked to her husband, and here they were now. Fulfilling their plan.

Back in the nursery, her son close to her chest, Narcissa asked:

  
"Sunny. Do you remember what I am asking of you?" The meek voice of the house-elf repeated without a hitch:

  
"Take Master Draco to safety until you come to find Sunny, in two to three days. Care for him and protect him during that time. Never come back."

  
"Marvelous." Narcissa praised, tears burning her eyes and clouding her vision, a massive weight burrowing in her chest and keeping her from uttering a word more. Narcissa was conscious that this choice was the good one. The one that would allow her son to survive. It didn't make it any easier to accept, now did it? Hastily, before she could let her resolve crack, she surrendered her newborn to the elf, who vanished without a trace as soon as the infant was secured in her arms.

  
She waited. Waited until her double came back into the room with her. Only then did she scream, alarming the entire castle of her missing little prince.

Their universe was plunged into chaos upon the discovery of Draco's so-called kidnapping.

The Dark Lord was furious and the Malfoys had to respond swiftly. All of the people who knew about the boy started looking for him, others swore that it would be better to warn the newspaper and the Aurors- others were quick to remind those that the boy still had the scars from the ritual and that if someone from the Ministry were to find him they were sure to open a case on that and take the baby away for good. At least that was one good thing about the damned ritual...

Still: everyone was looking for the little boy. If this kept going like this, they'd end up finding Sunny.

This particular thought was motivation enough for Narcissa to crawl to the residence of some of the Dark Lord's most dangerous foes, begging for help. With her, her son, innocent and asleep for now- even if she'd love to see his sweet little eyes one last time, that was probably for the best. All her life, she'd obeyed the Dark Lord, vowed to be devoted to him, always, and gave up on a serene existence for him. But endangering her boy's very soul was a line not to cross. Her Lord did it anyway.

She knocked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! Here it is, my first chapter! Sorry if it's a bit short. I’ll update as soon as I can. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed it so far!


	2. New Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Narcissa takes Draco to meet his new parents! Lily is confused but means well, James is panicking and Sirius is not impressed...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess I was inspired today and wanted to post a second chapter here, so here goes. Enjoy!

James gaped in consternation at the baby his wife was handling. Gaped at the door Narcissa used to take her leave, almost an hour ago already. Gaped At the house-elf shyly hovering, eyes carefully trained on the baby. The baby his wife was still holding. One that wasn't hers. Did any of what he just saw really happened? Was he just dreaming?

Honestly? James wasn't sure what in Merlin's name just happened. One minute, he was home, relaxed, enjoying a quiet night and a glass of wine with his gorgeous Lily, after they'd finally managed to put his treasure of a son to sleep for once... the next, he was in a frenzy, scrambling through the mansion, looking for anything they'd need- ready to move to Sirius'. They didn't have time to go any further than that, he'd reasoned. They had to go into hiding. The Death Eaters were after them, after their _kid_. And for some reason, their benefactor decided that she would tell them so for a price. A price that the light of his life was now busy carefully disguising so that his fair hair would be black and his grey eyes hazel. James winced when his eyes met the pinkish, intricate scars on the baby's chest. This would be such a pain to hide. Would they even be able to hide that? They had to. Somehow. He was too tired for this... Lily snapped him out of his panic with a few snaps of her fingers, forcing him to look at her handiwork:

"What do you think? How does he look? I think he could look like Harry's sibling, but..." She probed, unconvinced, lifting the bundle up, showing him off to a disquieted, hysterical James. Still, she demanded his help and so he'd humour her, as always.

"Perfect. That should dupe 'em- I just- Lily- I don't get it! Why her? You'd imagine she'd be eager to have her son slaving away for the crazed freak!" She looked unsure- her- the picture of confidence, didn't know how to respond. She pursed her lips, chewed her cheek, shifted her gaze, played with her wristbands before deflating, eyes focused on the kid:

"I'm not sure, James. All we know is that... she did it anyway- and this child is with us- he's ours now. We'll just have to finalise the adoption ritual later, but it's done. That's all she asked of us. To raise him as our own. That's all she asked. I just- didn't think I'd have to go for round two that early. Hell, we're barely even started with round one!" She giggled, the sound anxious and yet valiantly trying to seem unbothered, careless.

The weak attempt at a joke did not do much to hearten James' mood as he begrudgingly went back to packing their suitcases, mentally going over all they'd need and all they'd already taken. So much to do, so little time... as far as they knew, the witch could be deceiving them and leading them to a trap! Maybe the truth serum she asked them to use on her was fake! Maybe she just somehow cursed Lily to tell the truth for a while when his wife tested it, only to have them trust her! Maybe she lied about everything. Or maybe she'd inform them too late, and Death Eaters were going to burst through their door any second now! The former suggestion would at least imply that one of his best friends wasn't a mole... Peter... The mere idea was too much to bear, made knots twist in his stomach, and yet he knew he'd have to tell the Order, preferably sooner than later. For tonight, however:

"What did she give him? We made enough noise to wake an entire city, already." He wondered aloud, eyes suspiciously trained on the motionless child; without missing a beat, Lily turned to the elf who swore:

"Mistress Narcissa fed him nothing dangerous... Sunny would not have supported it... Only some lavender infusion, coupled with two drops of dreamless draught inside his milk. It should keep him unconscious for a while longer." James was doubtful but decided to let it slide for now. The elf was theirs now and wouldn't dare to lie to its new masters anyway. Lily stayed quiet for a few more moments before she loudly realized, jolting James out of his own reverie:

"Sunny? What did you say he was to be called?"

"Draco, Lady Potter." understanding dawned on James as well, who confirmed her suspicions:

"Damn. That's a Black name if I ever heard one. Not even a common one. Better to change that- if we're gonna keep him, I mean." The addition wasn't welcome if Lily's glare was anything to go by. However, before he could defend himself, she took a breath and lowered her gaze towards her charge, eyeing him with some tenderness for a bit before suggesting:

"I had other names I liked other than Harry, remember? What do you think about-Adam? Logan? Dean? Dovan? Andrew? Damian? Or Damien? Arthur? Lucas? Elias? Or maybe Daniel?" None of them, James would say if he really wanted to be honest. He didn't want to name any son of his any of these names before and that didn't change. But they didn't have all night, and so he settled on:

"Daniel will do just fine. I'm almost done now. Elf! Go get Harry in the nursery and come find us in front of the fireplace. Now." He commanded, to the... muted disapprobation of his wife. Come on! The elf didn't even look hurt!

"You know I hate it when you treat these poor things like they weren't even living beings." She harshly remarked when the creature listened, popping out of the room. James wouldn't get away with it if he trusted the way she glared even when she was getting up to follow him down the stairs.

"Sorry... Bad habit. I promise I'm trying."

"I know you are." She mumbled, tightening her hold on the other baby, clearly not entirely pacified, but that would do. They still had to evacuate. Sunny was already waiting for them in front of the chimney. Their baby boy wide awake and curiously cooing and poking at her, but she held firm, indifferent, unquestionably used to the treatment.

Without giving himself another moment to doubt, James stepped into the chimney first, suitcases in hand, trusting his lover to handle her son and the other boy while he tried to talk to Sirius.

* * *

James would have to offer Sirius a drink later. The guy didn't even blink when he saw the circus in his living room. Didn't seem all that bothered when James jumped at him, babbling about what they just learned and about how they needed a hiding place and they couldn't think of anywhere else to go and could Sirius please let them live with him for a while. He didn't freak out. He didn't mock either, surely understanding that the situation was most likely serious for once. Merlin! He barely even blinked when he saw Lily bursting through the floo with two babies and a house-elf in tow. He only told James to shut it for now and to explain again in the morning when he would be calmer, and when it wasn't _so late_. He then sent them all to his house's one guest room, not even asking questions about the two obvious intruders.

Yes, James would have to offer Sirius a drink later. When all this madness was over. James would need one as well anyway. More than one.

With a sigh, he turned to the three laying beside him. He didn't know how Lily managed to fall asleep with the night they've just had, but there she was, one baby cradled in each of her arms and softly snoring... At least that made one of them! He huffed, falling against the mattress, eyes tightly closed, trying for the umpteenth time to just sleep instead of glancing at the little intruder every few minutes. He wasn't very successful. He wasn't very successful at all. This time, it took only thirty seconds before his eyes were trained once more towards the little thing, still sound asleep and snuggled up to Lily's side. At least, whatever it was Narcissa gave him was efficient.

His eyes then lifted back towards Lily, and the conversation they had right before his wife went to sleep came back to him:

_"So. Did you manage to hide the scars yet?" He asked, lightly bouncing his barely asleep son while his wife was still hunched over the other child._

_"Almost done." She assured, not sparing him a glance, focused as she was on her task. James had to hold himself back from going to stop her from biting her lip. It looked like she would soon be drawing blood. Before his resolve could snap, however, she threw her head back with a heavy sigh and a relieved:_

_"Done!" And indeed the scars were mostly gone. Only faint traces of it were left here and there, but they could easily pass as birth-marks. Weirdly shaped birth-marks. Sometimes, James still marvelled at how he got to marry such a talented witch._

_Both of them went to look at anything else they probably should be hiding on the baby, and when there was nothing, they took a break, going to lie in bed together. After a few moments of just breathing, Lily's face grew sombre again, and she swiftly snatched her wand, throwing a few spells around the room, making sure they couldn't be heard. When that was done, she lied back down and asked something that made James pause:_

_"What do we tell Sirius? What do we tell people?"_

_"What?"_

_"People can't know the truth, James. What if someone decides to take him away? What if it puts him in danger? What if it puts us in danger? Harry? People can't know."_

_"But Sirius-"_

_"Is your best friend. I know, but the fewer people know the better, don't you think?"_

_"I suppose." He reluctantly admitted. He wasn't sure if he liked this new turn of events._

_"So, what do we say?" Good question. What could they say? Harry's been in their lives for five months already and all their closest friends knew about him. And they also knew that Lily couldn't have a new one already. So what?_

_"He's Harry's twin." He blurted out, this explanation being the only logical one he could reach at the moment. Lily hummed:_

_"And where was he this whole time? What of the elf?"_

_"I- I'm not sure... But... He's awfully pale, isn't he? And his mother did say that whatever the ritual did to him made him sick..."_

_"So he was born sick? And we kept him a secret?"_

_"Why not? And the elf is a specialized one. A nurse elf. They're not all that common, but they're a thing."_

_"Why did we hide him?" She asked, head resting against his shoulder, eyes closed, brows furrowed._

_"I don't know... We didn't want people to worry? We didn't know if he would make it past his first few months?"_

_"I guess this will have to do for now."_

She didn't sound sure when she said that, not too long before finally falling asleep. To be fair, James didn't feel sure either, even now. They were too tired to come up with a more convincing story and what more could they do for now? They were screwed. At least they didn't have to lie to that many people, the entire world wasn't aware of Harry's existence yet, it would be easy to introduce the new kid as his brother and pretend as if he was there the whole time. If they paid the doctors who helped with Lily's pregnancy enough, they shouldn't have too much difficulty shutting up. James just hoped that the few people they would have to lie to wouldn't ask too many questions and just be graceful enough to buy their stupid story... Sirius would find out in less than a day.

* * *

Sirius, for once, wasn't paying much attention to the boy relentlessly trying to reach his hair from where he was lying in his laps. Harry was his favourite godson, no questions asked, but right now? Right now, there was another baby right there, who he felt like he should know for some reason. Call it his sixth sense, but he couldn't shake the feeling that something was off here.

It was ridiculously late last night when James burst into his house with his entire household with him, babbling something about them being in danger and needing shelter- And also that apparently there was a traitor amongst them, but Sirius had pretty much stopped listening at that point, exhausted as he was.

In short: when they first got there, it was too late for Sirius to deal with any of it, and seeing how his friend didn't make any sense anyway, Sirius interrupted him. He then assured James that they'd talk in the morning when he was rested and done with the crazy talk. He then sent the wary family to a spare room where they spent the rest of the night. Everything happened so fast, Sirius barely even realized that there were two other people there. That fact only hit him in the morning when he saw Lily coming out of the room with two babies in her arms instead of one... And with a house-elf on her heels, the creature looking distressed about not being the one to hold the unknown kid. Obviously, he asked for an explanation right away.

Now, it was after Lily's explanation, James wasn't awake yet, and Sirius was... Sceptical was one word for it. Oh! Don't get him wrong, he did believe most of this story Lily just told him. However, it didn't change the fact that he was sure- no, he knew that there was something Lily wasn't telling him. She was lying about something. Something that had to do with this twin Harry apparently had. A twin that his mates had apparently neglected to mention up until now. A whole five months after his godson's birth. Right.

"So. Let me get this straight. Narcissa- as in, my cousin- came to your house last night asking for help. She told you everything about the Dark Lord's plan to kill your entire family because there were chances that Harry would bring him down later on in life. And Peter's a snitch. And she told you that for a price, which she didn't tell you about yet. As for him" He continued, pointing at the other baby: "This is Daniel. He's Harry's twin brother. He was there since the beginning, just very sick. You didn't tell anyone about him until _now_ because you guys were worried he wouldn't make it and didn't want _us_ to worry. The elf was his nurse. Did I get everything right?"

"Pretty much, yes!" And she dared to look him in the eye while blatantly lying through her teeth. That's why he liked her so much. Didn't mean that he would let it pass, though. 

"Do you want help making up a more convincing story? For when he meets other people? 'Cause that one really wasn't convincing at all, Lily. You're lucky Harry didn't get his naming ceremony yet, that should make things easier. You should introduce them together, then."

He saw the panic flashing in her eyes, which disappeared just as fast as it came, replaced by a sickeningly sweet smile:

"But it  _ is  _ the truth." _Oh, Lily, you really shouldn't be playing these kinds of games with me_. She would discover that soon enough:

"If you say so... Say, your angel's awfully pale." He pointed out, and it was true. If he didn't know better, he'd say that the kid really was barely recovering from a deadly illness.

"So am I!" She beamed, he shot back:

"Never that bad, though. Also, the brat does look like someone I know."

"I mean, you do know his father. And brother." Alright, miss know-it-all. Let's see how you clarify that one, then:

"Nah, not that. As a matter of fact, your little guy reminds me more of my own little brother when he was this age. By the way, did you know that my nephew, Cissy's child, went missing? Funny coincidence that you would introduce me to that little darling right after meeting her." And finally, she gave up, taking the boy closer to her chest in a shielding gesture when she snapped:

"I got it! Alright? Don't you dare to tell anyone." Oh! He wouldn't. He wouldn't even contemplate betraying his friends in such a way, but:

"Why wouldn't you tell me? And why is Draco here? Looking like this? I'm pretty sure that last time she deigned to talk to me, Narcissa told me he was just like his father. And why would she give him to you? What's going on? Was he the price you had to pay for the info? Why? Are you going to keep the elf? I thought you hated these?" She at least had the decency to look sheepish the more questions he asked. As if it finally hit her how ridiculous it was to tell him lies about the circumstances of the baby's appearance if he was to support and house them for the foreseeable future.

"I'll tell you everything now, but first: Sorry I lied. We just talked last night and I thought that it'd be better if as few people as possible knew the truth. If anything... James didn't want to do it."

"Apology accepted. Now, what happened?" He shot back, patience wearing thin now that the truth was officially out. She relented, eyes stubbornly staring at the baby in her arms:

"Alright. So: you are right. Narcissa told us for a price: on the condition that we would keep her little one with us and raise him as if he was ours. The adoption ritual's already done, he's really ours now. She wouldn't go into details, but the Dark Lord aspired to do something to him- already did something to him. Making him... Special- though she wouldn't tell us what it meant. I'm guessing it had to do with the disgusting scars on his chest- they looked like ritualistic ones- They definitely were magical ones. It took me half the night to completely hide them. And I wasn't even successful, there are still traces of them, and I'll have to strengthen the spellwork whenever I can... She thought that taking him to us in exchange for life-saving knowledge would protect  _ him.  _ As for Sunny- Narcissa guaranteed us that the people that mattered didn't even know nor cared about her. Didn't even remember her name. She already got another elf to pretend that she was Danny's. So I was considering keeping her as a live-in Nanny of sorts. She wouldn't do everything, and we'd treat her well! And that's all... That's the truth. And here we are now. So, Sirius: This is no longer your nephew. This boy is your godson's twin brother: Daniel Potter." She introduced again, displaying the baby rather proudly, already. Daniel. He could roll with it. Less lame than Draco, at any rate.

"Lemme hold him."

"What?"

"Take Harry and let me have him. Please? Cissy wouldn't even let me see the terror. After the kidnapping- I was sure I'd never even get to see him at least once." 

Her eyes narrowed, suspicious... Rightfully so too, it wasn't like Sirius usually was the kind who would even care about a Malfoy... He didn't even know why he'd cared when he learned about the kidnapping, but he still did. And to see him now? He really did want to just hold him.  


She silently assessed him a moment longer until she ultimately lifted Harry off his legs and allowed him to lift Daniel off hers. Immediately upon laying eyes on him, a sense of wonder overtook him. He'd known that this kid had no chance to ever be truly happy as soon as he was made aware of his birth- What Malfoy could honestly claim to be, after all? What Black could? Merlin! The kid would've been lucky to even know what words such as "happy" meant! And now this miracle was happening. The little life in his arms gazed back, eyes shining with curiosity at the brand new grownup. Later, he probably would be ashamed about the gushing, but then and there:

"Hey there, little lad! Nice to be finally meeting you. You almost got me worked up, you know that? Disappearing on everyone like you did? Look at you now! All handsome! Man, you'll see. You'll have a great life here: the Potters are good parents! Mostly... And I'll be there, too. Can't exactly let James be your one father figure, am I right?" And he knew he already meant it.

* * *

Later, when James stepped into the room, he wasn't surprised to learn that they needed a better story and that Sirius already found out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! This time the chapter is longer! 
> 
> Alright. So the Malfoys are already gone, and they won't be back for a while, but I promise that they'll have a role in this, and they'll be back later. The next few chapters will be mostly some childhood fluff and bonding time between Draco (excuse me, Daniel) and his new family. 
> 
> Thank you if you're still reading now!


	3. The first few months

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something is off with James, Daniel might get his own godfather very soon, Sirius is already resigned to his new fate of being the Potters’ private voice of reason and advice-giver, and the first few months pass in no time at all. Life is great.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Here's the new chapter. I was thinking I would start updating whenever I can either on Sundays or Mondays, so this is the first time I'm respecting this new schedule.
> 
> Enjoy!

Sirius was sitting at the terrace when she first came to see him. He knew that it was coming.

Daniel was rather easy-going. He didn't cry all that often for a kid his age. Really? He mostly did when Harry started. Or when he was separated from Harry for more than ten seconds. To be fair, Harry did the same thing. What was clear was that his godson already loved him, and Daniel loved him back.

Then, there was that the boy mostly slept through the night already, waking up only rarely at this point. In fact, he did that a lot... Sleeping. The man even found the little one dozing off while he was being fed more than once, nearly giving him a heart attack the first time he did it. He'd feared that the kid would shock, but nothing happened. Once he got used to that new quirk, though, it became another reason why Sirius would call him cute. Yes, cute. He definitely was: he always looked curious about anything and everything around him, and when he wasn't looking curious, it most likely was because he was either sleeping, smiling or laughing at something. He also loved to just be held and to hold onto something- anything, be it a finger, hair or even the fabric of a shirt.

As long as he was being held or near Harry, he was so easy to deal with, and yet...

It wasn't like James was exactly subtle about it... Whatever "it" was. In the beginning, Sirius wanted to let it slide, assuming that it was just a matter of time before his friend would adapt to the brand new situation. After an entire two weeks with no change, he was getting slightly frustrated, but thought that Lily would get involved. Surely she would be able to snap her husband out of whatever was wrong with him. He knew she noticed.

At first, she threw worried glances his way from time to time.

Then, she started asking subtle questions, trying to get her husband to spend time with their sons for more than ten minutes at a time.

He didn't know if they ever really discussed it, though he did notice how she would cast privacy spells upon privacy spells around her room, making sure that no outsider could hear them at night. That included him.

Then, by the end of the third week, when nothing seemed to change, Lily started going to some type of "meetings" with someone every couple of days. She wouldn't tell either of them who it was. First, she'd go alone, then she started taking the boys. The one time James tried to pry, she just said that he needn't worry: she was merely meeting with a friend who could potentially help with Daniel later on. Maybe they'd meet later.

Since she never had any difficulty coming back and never got into trouble, neither men wanted to ask any more than necessary, and so they left it alone... He wasn't sure if he was a fan of the way James seemed to relax any time she left with them. 

So no. Sirius really wasn't surprised in the least when Lily rushed to sit beside him as soon as James retreated for the night, on the third day of the fifth week of this little game:

"Please tell me you've noticed!" She nearly hissed. Something told Sirius that if he didn't tell her what she wanted to hear, she would probably lose it. The fingers from her left hand were digging hard into the fabric of the sofa she was sitting on, nearly ripping it. Meanwhile, she was roughly massaging her temples with her right hand. Her leg wouldn't stop jumping with nervous energy. Her eyes were screwed, and he was pretty sure she was grinding her teeth. She was a mess:

"It's rather hard not to." She probably would've fallen to her knees in relief if it wasn't for the fact that she was already sat down. All at once, she just let go, her whole body going limp at once as she exhaled. He didn't even notice she'd been holding her breath:

"Good. I thought I was the one going insane over here." Sirius couldn't exactly say he'd blame her. He wouldn't believe this either if he hadn't been seeing it for himself during the past almost six weeks.

"Did you guys talk?"

"I'm trying, but he swears he's fine! He won't tell me anything! He keeps on acting as if everything was normal and I just- I don't know anymore. We swore we'd always be there for each other, but he won't even talk to me anymore. I barely even see him hang out with Harry anymore!" And then tears welled up in her eyes. Lily's face was a pretty accurate representation of what Sirius felt when he noticed. Hands quickly flew to her eyes to swipe at the tears.

"Shit- Lily..."

"No. I shouldn't have- shouldn't have bothered you with this. It's a couple-problem, nothing to do with you. I'm sorry. I should go."

"Don't. I was going to talk to him anyway. He's being an arse and I wanna know why."

"Really? Are you serious?" He couldn't help but snicker. She pushed at his shoulder:

"You know what I mean. Are you?" He went to squeeze her shoulder:

"Well... If he won't listen to you, maybe he'll listen to me, right?" He wasn't so sure, but what else was he supposed to say?

"I would hope so. Thank you, Sirius."

"No problem." He just hoped that James would at least listen to him...

* * *

The next time Lily left for one of her mystery visits, it was two days later and Danny was apparently coming up with something. Or at least, Lily thought that he was too warm and didn't want to take any risk. For this reason, the little one had to be left behind so he could rest. Neither James nor the little ones seemed to be all that joyful about that brand new development, though not for the same reasons.

It was a good thing the House-elf was here because it didn't look like James would be the one to help taking care of the kid, as he was too busy brooding on the living room's couch. Sirius waited for the brat to fall asleep before he went to find James, two cups of coffee in his hands. James didn't react, merely staring at a book. Staring at the same page he's been staring at for the last twenty minutes. After a few seconds too many of awkward silence, Sirius took a deep breath and started:

"So... You okay?"

Alright. Maybe he should've made sure that James knew he was there sooner. At least it wasn't too hard to clean off the coffee stains on the floor, and a quick _reparo_ was enough to get his favourite cup back and good as new. Daniel was still asleep too, from what he could hear. That also was good news. The only casualties were his eardrums, who probably wouldn't be forgiving him for a while, but he could live with that. And maybe James also was a bit cross with him now, if the way he was being gawked at was any indication.

He smiled and handed James the cup that was still intact as a peace offering:

"I guess that's a no, then? Coffee?" James sent him a stare that would have made him laugh any other time, but now, it was just a tad unnerving. At least he ended up accepting the cup:

"What do you need, Sirius?"

"Just want to know what's bugging you. You haven't exactly been discreet when avoiding your brats for the last month." James winced, eyes unable to meet Sirius'

"I don't see what you're talking about."

"No? Don't you?"

"I _am_ taking care of them. I could leave everything to the elf."

"Lily wouldn't let you. And you're only helping when neither Lily nor I can. And you're always finding an excuse to bail as soon as possible. It's pretty dang obvious. So what is it?" His hands were gripping his cup of coffee so hard, Sirius was starting to fear that it would explode sooner or later. He never answered. After an entire minute of this, Sirius was starting to lose his patience, he resumed:

"Lily talked to me about this, you know?"

"What?"

"She did. And she also cried. I don't know how long she can take whatever is going on here. So would you mind telling me?" This most likely was a terrible strategy to use, he was well aware of that. However, it also was the only method he knew would work every single time. He was pretty sure that any other would have made the other clam up, making any type of further conversation simply impossible. At least, if James knew he was doing this for Lily's sake, then the chances of him talking definitely were increased. And indeed:

"I know she can't. I swear, I'm trying to do better, but it's just-... I don't know how she does it."

"Do what? What do you mean?"

"I guess I could say the last few days have been... How does Lily say it again? A wild ride... If you know what I mean?" It had been. But what did that have with anything?

"I guess you could say that..."

"I mean- Have you seen these last few weeks? It's insane! And well- I thought I could handle it, but after Wormtail confessed to everything... And the kid still being there... I guess it made everything real, see? This entire thing is real, and I don't know how to even look at this kid without thinking about it! And I know he _is_ technically ours- Merlin! I can feel his magical bond with me even right now- but I can't help but think that he's still coming from them! What if he puts us all in danger just by being here?

What if he grows to be like them? What do we do then? What if he ends up hurting Harry? What then? I don't know how to handle any of this and it comes back to me every time I see him... I know, it's completely stupid. He's a baby, and if all goes according to plan, he won't ever even see the Malfoys, let alone take any habit from them. I just can't help it.

I'm always thinking about it, meanwhile: Lily, Harry, even you seem to have formed this... This bond with him in less than a month and I don't know how Lily does it! What if we never have a good relationship? What if it's always like this and he turns out like them because of me or something? I don't know how to handle this! I don't want anything to happen to him, but I can't bring myself to seriously care about him as I care about Harry, even though I know they're both mine, and it makes me feel like a monster!" James was the one near tears now. This seemed to happen a lot lately. Sirius hated this.

And wow. That certainly was a lot to take in all at once. At least it was nice to know that James did, in fact, know that something was off. And what was Sirius supposed to say now? He wasn't a father himself, what did he know?! How did you even start to address that? Somehow, he was pretty sure that asking James to talk with his wife about it would be a good idea in theory, but would only gain him a hex in the face in practice.

So now what? He was no father and didn't know many people who could help! Well... There still was what Andromeda's husband went through, but was that even the same thing? Couldn't hurt to try... Probably...

"You know... I could get you to talk with Andromeda's man."

"What does he have to do with anything?"

"He couldn't seem to bond with Nymphadora for the first few months either."

"Who?"

"His daughter. She wasn't adopted, but he did have a hard time from what I understood. I could get 'em to meet up with you if you think it could help." James took his sweet time answering, mulling it over. He took a few sips of coffee before eventually shrugging:

"Couldn't hurt to try I guess..."

"Also... I'm not a professional, but maybe Daniel staying here for the day could be an occasion for you to spend time with him..."

"You're right... But I've never felt like this with Harry before. This boy... He terrifies me. What if I do something wrong?"

"I'll be there." He swore because that's all he could do at this moment.

As if on cue, weak whines rose from the bedroom where Dan had been sleeping mere moments prior. James visibly paled and looked at Sirius as if he was waiting for instructions now:

"Well... Will you go, then?" James waited for a second longer before surprising Sirius, putting the now empty cup on the coffee table, before heaving himself up and away from the sofa. He then made his way through the kitchen and into the guest room.

When Sirius joined him, it was to see his mate gently taking the still whining infant from Sunny's arms, rather awkwardly cradling him to his chest. Sirius was bemused to notice that it was the first time James was holding the kid so gently. It kind of reminded him of the first time the guy held Harry, now that Sirius was thinking about it.

The man opted to give them some space, quietly signalling for the elf to leave the room before he himself backed away from the doorway, making his way back into the kitchen and to the nearest table. Far away enough to give these two some privacy, but close enough to be there in case something were to somehow go wrong.

They stayed in there for quite a while. This certainly was the most time they've spent together this far. And he knew they could make it when he heard James humming a song from inside the room.

That evening, Lily thanked him. Even though things weren't good yet, it was a step forward.

* * *

After that day, Sirius managed to get back into contact with his older cousin. She went into hiding months ago without telling anyone where she was going, not even to him. However, Sirius had his way and tracked her and her little family down in a matter of hours.

They were living as Muggles in a quaint little village named Dedham, not too far away from London.

At first, she didn't seem all too pleased about being found, but he got her to agree to let James meet her husband anyway. Said husband was more than happy to help find ways to bond with Danny. He even advised them to go to some kind of Mind Healer who specialized in helping children and their parents form healthier relationships. She was a Muggle too, which made covering their tracks tremendously easier. 

Things were still a far cry from being perfect, but at least James was trying and improving now. Talking to the kids, playing with both of them at the same time, sharing more and more moments with them, to the great despair of Sunny, and sharing a lot of skin contact with them both, which surprisingly seemed to work. 

Sirius was persuaded they were on the right track when he saw how ecstatic James was when the boy took his very first steps, a mere five days after Harry did. That was almost two months after therapy began.

It was also around the time this happened that Lily decided James was ready to meet this friend she'd been seeing.

The first visit didn't go well. James came back furious and wouldn't even tell Sirius about what happened. That was the first thing that let Sirius know that he probably wouldn't like this Mystery Person either if he were to find out who they were.

After another month of meetings, James seemed calmer when he had to go, although he never seemed to completely stop being annoyed about them.

When Sirius asked, his friend's only answer was that: since he got to chose one of his friends as Harry's godfather, Lily got to chose one of hers for Dan, and that if that 'friend' of hers was going to be the one, then it was better for everyone involved if James learned to at least be civil with him. And no, Sirius couldn't know who it was yet because that would be against traditions, and also he would make a scene...

That last part of the explanation had made Sirius scoff at the time. Now, it was yet another month later, only one week before the official naming ceremony, right after Sirius was made aware that one _Severus Snape_ was chosen as the little guy's godfather:

"What?! Please tell me this is a joke. Are you insane?! Did you forget which side he's on?! Did you forget who he is?!"

"Shush, you'll make her notice us! Just hear me out: Lily made him tell me that he switched sides a while ago. He's spying on them for Dumbledore now. He said that under veritaserum too..." And that was supposed to make him feel better?

"I don't care. Why did she even go to him? These two didn't talk in years!"

"That might have something to do with what Narcissa told us."

"And that would be?"

"That he used to be Dan's godfather back when he was still a Malfoy. And that he may or may not have had something to do with Dan's escape..."

"How?"

"He wouldn't go into details, but he basically said something about Narcissa needing someone to replace her while she was taking care of his escape in the nursery? And that he helped getting rid of evidence and clues that could help the Death Eaters find the kid? I don't know. All I know for sure is that he helped and that Lily's spent the last few months making friends with him all over again, and that now she wants him to be his godfather! And I have no valid reason to refuse beside that I don't like him."

"How about: he could totally sell the lot of you out, even if he's supposed to be a spy! He's Snape! He's a snake, and you took the woman he loved. What do you think he will do?"

"He could have done this sooner: Lily's been seeing him for months now. I've been seeing him for a while too. If he really wanted to trick us, I think he would've done it by now. Plus... Believe it or not, but I've seen him with Dan. Merlin, I've seen him with Harry, even. He got pretty fond of them both by now, I don't think he'd do anything to hurt them. And the brats got attached to him, too. Look, I know you don't like it. I don't either. But it's already done now, and the naming ceremony is right around the corner. We don't have time to get him a new one."

"I'm sure Moony would be happy to be his godfather. If you would wait for him to come back from wherever he was sent- he should be back any day now!"

"I just told you: Lily already named him, I can't take the title back even if I wanted to. Plus... I think he earned it. He did help to bring Daniel to us, after all." Sirius hated when that idiot was right.

"I guess. Alright. I'll play 'nice' for the naming ceremony. But if he does anything to cause trouble, I'll hex him to kingdom come. And don't count on me to leave him alone near the kids." James laughed:

"I actually was hoping you'd say something like that. I wouldn't hold you back, don't worry."

"Good." At least James was still somewhat sane. He just hoped that he could still say the same about Lily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here goes.
> 
> Thank you if you're still reading, the next chapter should be out next week!


	4. Trouble in Paradise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Birthday happens, the danger is closing in and choices have to be made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there! 
> 
> Here it is: Chapter 4. Honestly? This one was pretty fun to write! Don't hesitate to comment your thoughts on it if you want to.
> 
> Hope you'll enjoy it!

One week later, James started to think that he might have made a mistake.

He promised Sirius that he wouldn't interfere, and he wouldn't! Though maybe his mate was going a little... Overboard? Was that a good word to describe it? It certainly seemed about right.

On the night of the naming ceremony, Sirius spent all his time breathing down Snape's neck. It came to a point when even _James_ _himself_ was beginning to feel bad for the guy! And loathed as he was to admit it: Snape was taking it incredibly well. Especially considering who he was. He did say a few things that got Sirius' face to redden in apparent anger, as far as James could see, but nothing bad enough to earn him so much as a hex of any kind.

As a matter of fact: the guy stayed unexpectedly courteous throughout the entire night. Never stepping out of line even once: he stayed polite when he ran into Remus for Merlin's sake!

Now: that did not mean that James was going to let him off the hook that easily, just that he was... Agreeably surprised. For now. He did not doubt that the grouch would end up doing something to make him change his mind later on. Most likely sooner rather than later.

As for the ceremony in and of itself: it was a quiet affair, all things considered. Only a few members of the Order and close friends were invited: no more than fifteen people in total. It was also held at a secret point: the Death Eaters being after them still was a real threat and they couldn't exactly do it in public as they would have wanted. Even the guests didn't know where they were: all of them were taken and then brought back home by James, Sirius, and Remus.

The children behaved especially well too. No one seriously questioned the fact that there were two of them instead of one either, everyone assuming that Lily really did birth twins. Just as expected. 

As soon as the "ceremony" part was done, Mrs Weasley went to spend a good fifteen minutes gushing over them before drowning poor Lily under piles of advice and stories about "what kind of mischief these two would probably get into later on if they were anything like her little Fred and George."

While that happened, Snape took the opportunity to drag Sirius away and to another room. They weren't seen again for about an hour before they emerged back, seemingly more or less satisfied with whatever discussion they had.

Sirius would tell him later that they'd launched a truce of a sort. A truce that would most likely last until the kids were legal adults: they would try and get along for their friends and the children's sake, while also keeping each other in check if need be. That was fine by James, really: as long as this meant that these two wouldn't be constantly at war with each other for the next seventeen years... Not too long after Sirius explained to him what happened, the guests had to be apparated back home and that was that.

So all in all: the ceremony went well. The best part for James was certainly when Moony wasn't too exasperated upon discovering little Danny. When he learned about how he came to become a part of their lives the guy only grumbled something about even more trouble coming their way now that James had not one, but two sons he could raise to become absolute menaces.

The twins' first birthday, which came not too long after that, wasn't nearly as tranquil for any of the people involved.

* * *

The twins' first birthday was probably the best day of their short lives. The little family spent the entire morning playing together, both James and Lily completely ignoring their respective duty for the day.

Remus and Severus showed up for lunch, where the kids were both served their favourite dish before they were allowed to eat as much cake as they could handle. After that, they were covered in gifts of all kind: books, games, toys, new clothes, items to decorate their future room... Maybe they were being a tad spoilt, but they did technically spend at least half their lives in hiding, and probably deserved all the comfort they could get. Plus: it was their very first birthday! If that meant that they would be buried under an avalanche of presents, then so be it.

The boys then spent their afternoon playing. Nothing of note happened for a while, until around 2 pm: when Snape was forced to leave, although he wouldn't say why. Sirius didn't waste a second. As soon as the man was out of the picture: his entire face lit up and he started boasting.

Snape's presents, kids' books with magical pictures in them, did interest the boys a lot. What child wouldn't be interested in a tiny pegasus made out of pure magic flying out from a book and around the room?

What really enthralled them, however, was the pair of matching children-sized brooms _Sirius_ managed to get them. Dan was mostly content with "studying" it. Staying near his mother, prudently hovering over the floor, trying to find his balance, and attempting to understand how it functioned as much as he could.

Meanwhile, Harry was unstoppable. The boy spent an eternity swiftly flying around the living room. He'd break everything and anything unfortunate enough to be in his way: he even nearly hit Sunny right in the face at some point! And no one could catch him. He only stopped on his own when he determined that he had enough and that he wanted to see how his little brother was faring.

Following Harry's little adventure: James concluded that his son was a born quidditch-player and Lily that it probably was best to try this gift out in a safer environment next time. As in: anywhere but inside. It didn't keep her from taking a ton of pictures of her babies flying for the first time.

Point was: it was Sirius' gifts that were the brothers' favourite! Somehow, James thought that he wouldn't hear the end of this any time soon.

Their day after that mainly consisted of playing and fooling around some more before going to sleep, safe and sound. Or so the adults thought.

Things took a dark turn when Severus reappeared, late into the night, to warn them that Death Eaters had a lead and were getting close to them. They needed to move. Needless to say: none of them slept much that night.

* * *

The following few days were a blur of discussions and research as they: Lily and James, with the help of Sirius, Remus and Snape, struggled to find a new place to hide themselves, and new ways to protect the children more efficiently. No place they could think of was secure enough. However, Lily did end up digging out an enchantment that could keep her boys out of harm's way in almost no time at all. Too bad James hated said enchantment already.

"No way." He slammed the book shut. He would never allow Lily to do something like this. Not to herself. Where did she even find that? Before he could ask, she snatched the old book back, hurrying to find the page again:

"Do you think we have a choice right now? We don't have much longer!"

"Then I'll do it." At that, Lily sent him the disappointed stare that meant he was being an idiot.

"Did you even read what it said? Unless you can find a way to turn into me right now: it won't work. Only mothers can do this. I'm only telling you because I need an assistant. More specifically: the father."

"Well, I won't help then! We'll find something else." She took a step away from him, glowering at him, crossed her arms, clutching the grimoire closer to her chest in a protective gesture. Her tone was resolute as she almost snarled:

"No time. And if you won't help: I'll do it on my own. It's harder but not impossible just so you know." And he knew she meant it. She just had... This light in her eyes that meant she would do it if pushed. No matter what he'd say now, she would.

Next thing he knew, it was the middle of the night, even more privacy spells were cast around the bedroom, all the furniture was pushed out of the way and the children were close by, quietly babbling to each other in their crib. James was sat down on his bed, watching over the pair while Lily prepared the ritual. When he asked if he could assist her in any way, she replied that this part she needed to do on her own.

The more time passed the more he wondered how this woman turned out to be more reckless than both he and Sirius combined. Was she always like this? How did he not notice? No, he did notice. He just chose to ignore it. A glint caught his eye and a shudder racked his frame when he saw her handling the wavy dagger:

"Are you sure you want to do it? You can still backtrack and we can find another solution." He tried, his heart hammering away in his chest:

"We don't have time." She repeated. He was seriously starting to consider that these were the only word she remembered how to say at this point.

"Figured you'd say that. I still think this idea is stupid. You know what it will do if anything happens to them, right?" She visibly tried to hide it, but he saw her gulp before she insisted, her eyes hard and boring into him:

"I don't mind. My entire family is living like this and they're fine."

"If the worst happens, it's not only your magic that will suffer, remember? How do you think the kids would take it? What about them? What if they grow up without a mother because you were being so foolish!? What if you leave us?" He knew he was being pushy, downright cruel to some degree, but he had to: a particularity of this enchantment was that it couldn't be annulled. It would have to fade on its own over time. They both knew it.

"Jame. If you're here to talk me out of it I'll ask you to leave." Her voice was harsh, cold. She wouldn't be deterred. He bit his tongue, knowing that if he spoke one more word she would be convinced to do this without anyone. He was never any good at keeping quiet. The one reason he was even making an effort to keep a low voice was to avoid disturbing the brothers any more than necessary:

"What else do you want me to do? I'm talking to my wife who decided that she would use one of the most dangerous enchantments in the books when there are thousands of other spells and charms she could be using! Why do you always have to go and take the worst kind of risks? You always do this! What if something does happen? What if they are attacked and you- and you..." He couldn't say it. He wouldn't cry dang it! They kept quiet for a few minutes before he felt Lily's hands going to wrap around his:

"Wouldn't you do it? It's the best way we've found yet: it will hold strong where other spells would break. Wouldn't you use it if you could? We have to think about the boys here." Not the same and she knew it. If he did it, then she wouldn't be the one risking anything. "I'm scared too, James: but it's just temporary. The enchantment doesn't last forever, remember? Just long enough for us to find a safer place. And if anything does happen... You'll be fine in the end. You're you." How was this reassuring in any way whatsoever? Maybe he was being selfish. Or even childish, who knew? Maybe. But he didn't care: his wife was being the reckless one and he didn't want to live a life without her! He pulled her in his arms, holding on tight:

"I don't want to lose you." He murmured in her hair. Even he could hear how thick his voice had gotten. He was being pathetic. She went to squeeze him back:

"And I don't want to lose you boys either. If all goes according to plan, nothing will happen at all. It's just a safety net... I don't really plan on leaving any of you any time soon!" Just a safety net. Right. He just hoped she knew what she was doing.

"Just know that I hate this." She sighed, pushed back just enough to look him in the eye:

"So do I. Shall we?" He really did hope she knew what she was doing. He bent to kiss her one last time, just in case something did go awry. They would've stayed like this for a while longer if it wasn't for the boys starting to get angsty from where they were stuck.

"Let's just get this over with." He whispered. She nodded.

And so the ritual finally began:

His role mostly consisted of making sure that the magic wouldn't start acting out while Lily recited the words, keeping the boys calm, and helping to carve some of the runes around the circle she was standing in whenever it was needed. Sirius would kill them both in the morning...

He had to admit: her never flinching even once was impressive, especially considering that they just barely avoided exploding the entire street twice.

Whatever she was saying was in some type of old English. Too old for James to comprehend any of it, but clearly it was working. Barely was she done with the first verse that she and the circle she was standing in started glowing ever so softly.

As she kept on chanting, a light orb slowly slid out of her and floated into the air, towards the boys. The light swallowed them until it was enveloping them entirely, acting as some kind of shield. It finally closed in on them both until it eventually merged with their bodies, fading and eventually disappearing completely. And just like that, it was over.

The entire thing left her obviously shaky, and her knees buckled just as she reached the bed. He was by her side in seconds:

"Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine. Just didn't expect this to be so exhausting. How are the kids?"

"They fell asleep halfway through. Don't look like they even noticed anything."

"Good." Her breathing was heavy, her stare distant and she felt startlingly hot. With a small grunt, James got back up and went to get her a glass of water, hoping to at least somewhat cool her down. He also weighed the pros and cons of going to wake Sirius now, just in case he needed help apparating her to St.Mungos.

Luckily, the glass of water seemed to somewhat do its job, and when she didn't look like she was going to faint anymore, he exhaled and spoke:

"I can't believe we seriously did that." She turned to him, lazily throwing an arm over his shoulders, pulling him down with her on the mattress:

"It'll be fine, Love." She reassured him one last time...

Later when he was sure she was asleep, he murmured.

"I hope you're right."

* * *

If anyone, especially James, were to ask, Lily would downplay it. She would say that it was nothing, barely an inconvenience. No one should worry about this: it didn't bother her. And she didn't regret it at all. Which was true: she didn't regret doing it. She would do it all over again if she had to.

However, what was also true was that: the enchantment drained Lily to her core. Ever since they completed it, a couple of weeks ago already, there was an ache deep in her bones that just wouldn't recede no matter what she tried. She never noticed how her magic was such a big part of her until then. Now that some of it was tethered to the boys' she felt... Empty. The buzzing in her veins that she never even noticed before was greatly diminished and something was just taken away from her. It left her numb. Also, she always felt at least a little tired: there wasn't a second when she didn't feel at all like closing her eyes, if only for an instant anymore. She knew it would all come back eventually, but it didn't make the situation any less uncanny or annoying.

A good thing was that it didn't take too long for them to find an adequate new hiding spot. Only two weeks after the rite ended.

It turns out that the Potter House gained a small warded villa a few centuries prior as a dowry, except that it was never put to use before. In fact, the old thing was almost completely forgotten because of the years of neglect it went through. No one would think of looking for them there, or at least not right away. It was perfect!

The one problem, however, was that it was situated in another country. In the Alpes in France, to be more precise. This meant that not only did they have to prepare some type of lure for any potential Death Eaters who could be on their tracks, they also had to have one ready for the Order. The order which probably wouldn't be too keen on letting them out of the country without a fight. Even if it was a matter of life or death.

It would usually be in times like these that Lily would wonder if joining the Order really was such a wise idea. Not now, however. Now was too late for regrets, and what mattered was finding a way out of this new problem. At least, finding a plan wasn't much of a hassle now that they knew more about what they had to deal with.

Their plan... It wasn't the best. Far from it. Lily wasn't even sure if she could say that it was any good at all, but at least it was something.

Remus was taking care of the Order, Severus and James of the Death Eaters, Sirius already was off to France, preparing the villa for them alongside Sunny. And since evaluating and renewing the house's defences would take a few days in the best-case scenario: that meant that the boys needed to stay with someone else in the meantime. Someone who wasn't part of the wizarding world, if possible. This was why Lily wasn't yet with her husband, baiting the threat away.

Her sister may hate her, but at least she had a hard time saying no to money.

The young mother looked at her charges one last time. She was met with two pairs of green and hazel eyes gazing right back. Danny went to grab at her shirt with a quiet coo while Harry clutched at her hair. Both of them wore gummy smiles on their little faces. Both of them unaware of what was yet to come.

With a long sigh, a last squeeze at her little treasures, and a quick prayer to a God she wasn't even sure she believed in, she knocked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What could possibly go wrong?...
> 
> This is it for now! I hope you enjoyed this week's chapter! See you next week and thank you if you're still here!


	5. We'll be okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something went wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Character death in this chapter. They're minor characters for the most part, and there isn't any graphic description either, but I thought it would be best to warn anyway just in case...

With a long sigh, a last squeeze at her little treasures, and a quick prayer to a God she wasn't even sure she believed in, she knocked.

For far too long nothing happened. Nothing changed, even though the lights were clearly on in the house. As her boys were starting to struggle in her arms, she decided that she probably should try to knock once more. Who knew? Maybe her sister didn't hear...

As she moved to do just that, the door was abruptly thrown open, nearly knocking the three of them down. Lily just barely managed to find her balance in time, thankfully.

When she glanced up, it was just so she could see a pair of icy-cold eyes glaring right at her. Geesh... When was the last time she'd seen her sister? When was the last time they were able to get along? With the tiniest grin, valiantly ignoring the anxiety stubbornly clawing at her chest, Lily greeted while she straightened back up:

"Petunia! You're looking... Fine... How have you been?"

"You took your time." The other nearly barked, tone scorching.

Lily reconsidered for what felt like the hundredth time already: could she really trust this woman with her little ones? And for what felt like the hundredth time, the same answer came to mind: Probably not. But what choice do you have now? Undeterred, she widened her smile and continued:

"I know, I'm so sorry about that... Things have been difficult lately and I couldn't come earlier. And- I don't know how to thank you for doing this, Petunia, really-"

"Don't. Don't start. Just hand them over, I don't have all night. And remember the deal." She snapped. Damn, she was ferocious tonight. She left Lily so bewildered that she barely even noticed as she handed her boys over with a murmured "goodbye" to them before she turned back to her sister:

"Yeah... You'll still get 70£ a day, and I should be back by the end of the week. Don't worry, I promise. Err... Just- before I go, I thought you would want this? I don't have time to tell you myself, so I wrote it down: it tells you what you need to know about these two. Their favourite food, when they should have their naptime, some of their habits, and-"

"I don't need any advice from you, Lily. I have a son too, remember? Just go now." And with that, the door was slammed shut in her face. Lily was left alone in the cold, dark street, her list still in hand as Petunia disappeared just as abruptly as she appeared. The young mother had half a mind to knock and demand that her sibling stop being so rude, demand to know why she just had to be so horrible all the time... But this wasn't the time nor the place for that. Her mission here was done and she couldn't afford to linger for much longer.

With that in mind, Lily turned around and hurried down the street, nearly running, never turning back. She didn't know if she would be strong enough not to go retrieve them right away, were she to turn back.

She never stopped walking until she reached the nearest park, twenty minutes away on foot from her sister's house. It was an old thing that had been left to rot decades ago. Lily herself was just barely aware of it but knew just enough to be sure that people didn't care about this abandoned place anymore. No one in their right mind would be there to bother her in the middle of the night.

When she found her way behind a ruined playhouse, she retrieved the portkey hidden there, right under it, and disappeared.  
This wouldn't last long. Just a week. It would be fine.

* * *

Petunia was most definitely cross with her by now.

Why was Petunia the one she was thinking about now? Even she didn't know for sure, but it didn't change anything. It'd been nearly three weeks since she entrusted her children to her sister, and Lily was thinking about said sister being furious at her for not respecting her promise.

And it didn't look like she was going to be able to respect said promise any time soon either.

To summarize things up: The villa was a mess. Going to live there while it was in such a state was just begging for more trouble. Seriously: it would need a multitude of modifications and repairs before it could even start to be considered inhabitable... both Sirius and Sunny spent days and nights working on it.

Meanwhile, Severus and Remus were their eyes and ears while Lily and James were busy spending their time playing bait. It seemed to work for the most part.

The couple would mostly go out during the day and act as if the kids were still with them, pretending as if they didn't notice the people dressed in dark robes blatantly spying on them- not that it was hard to notice them! They were getting increasingly sloppy these days. And they would obliviate the few desperate or foolish enough to get too close. Severus was in charge of making sure that the 'spies' did have "memories" to talk about when getting back.

And now... Now it was the evening of the Friday of the third week: Lily was bone-tired and done with just about everything concerning the war. All she wanted was to spend some quality time with her family and a cup of tea in front of a good old fashioned movie. A Disney would do just fine. She was sure that her little ones would love _The AristoCats_.

However, her dreams of relaxing movie nights with her loved ones would have to wait for another four to five days, if what Sirius told them that evening was anything to go by.

At least, that was the only really bad news they heard that evening.

Remus assured them that the Order was still none the wiser about their plan. Lily wasn't exactly sure _why_ the Order was so adamant about keeping them around, but they certainly were. It was a struggle for Remus to make sure that they didn't suspect anything, but he was still doing it. For that, she would be forever grateful.

Then, she tried to call Petunia. Her sister spent twenty minutes straight ranting about how Lily owed her big time, and that her brats were such a handful, and that poor Petunia already had her own son to take care of, her poor poor little Dudley who couldn't sleep as well now that he had to share a room with two other babies, and that she'd better come back soon because this wouldn't last for forever!

When Vernon ended up joining the conversation just so he could start a rant of his own, it took everything Lily had for her not to just give in and go slam her head against the nearest wall. Simply out of pure desperation to somehow get out of the discussion.

The one thing that made it all worth it, in the end, was when she was allowed to just hear her babies' voice if only for a few minutes... She nearly burst into tears when she caught her little Harry calling out for "Mama" and 'Day-Day'... Mum and Danny.

Petunia said that he'd been saying these words for the last two days already. That, and "no" whenever Vernon or Petunia tried to do anything her little one didn't like, apparently. Meaning that Lily successfully missed her elder's first words. And if what Petunia told her was true: Daniel was starting to babble more as well, it wouldn't be much longer before he'd say something too.

James didn't look all that pleased either when his turn to hold the phone came.

The rest of the evening was rather gloomy after that. They had a quick chat with Severus, who informed them that nothing was wrong on his side either, but he had to leave, so it didn't last for more than ten minutes.

Since neither of them was capable to find anything else to do after this exchange, they went to bed early.

Their lives were such a pathetic wreck.

She was just dozing off when she felt the mattress dipping beside her, and then there was a pair of arms circling her middle and pulling her to James' chest.

"When this is done with: I want a break. At least two months without even hearing of anything job-related. Just you, me and the kids in France and nothing else." She turned to face him with a slow nod, quietly agreeing, closing her eyes.

The quicker she'd fall asleep, the quicker she could get to the next day, the quicker she could have her life back and be done with this.

* * *

When James jolted awake it was to the sound of the phone Lily insisted on keeping nearby incessantly ringing in the middle of the night. It rang and rang, and James was just deciding that he would throw a Silencio its way when it dawned on him: Petunia was the only one who could reach them with this phone. And the hag probably wouldn't be calling them at such a late hour if it wasn't absolutely necessary.

Suddenly wide awake, James spun around. His hand flew to Lily's shoulder, shaking her for a while before jumping out of bed, reaching the infernal thing in less than two strides. Everything went from bad to worse as soon as he picked it up. His blood ran cold in seconds.

Petunia was screeching when he first picked up the phone. Loud enough for him to need to pull the thing away from his ear before he could even start to understand any of what she was trying to tell him.

She was screaming and screaming. Screaming that two men- two "freaks"- broke into her house. One looked like a monster: that one found the boys and attacked them while Petunia was hiding with her Dudley in her room. The other went after Vernon when he tried to bargain for his and his family's lives.

Vernon was dead.

When James demanded to know how the twins were doing, she just ordered him between shocked up sobs to come over right now with her sister. Her sister... Why didn't Lily try to take the phone away from him yet?

"Lily?" When she didn't even utter a word, he turned. She was in the same position as when he left her, mere minutes ago. "Lily?!" Nothing.

As dread slowly crept up his spine, he let go of the phone, leaving Petunia to yell herself hoarse on her own.

When he attempted to shake her a second time, he had to recoil, noting for the first time how cold she was to the touch. Nearly freezing. He then saw how pale she'd gotten, how deep the bags under her eyes were- her breathing was so shallow...

"Lily? Lily?! Hey! No. No, don't you dare! Don't you do this now! Lily! Wake up! Shite! Lily!" At some point, he must have Accio'd his wand over, as it was in his hand, and he was using it to use a Rennervate on her- wait! No! What if a spell now made it worse? Too late-

He was only able to find his breath when she suddenly came back to herself with a loud gasp and a sharp cough. Dull, unseeing eyes grew wide as she hurried to grasp at the first thing she could find- his arms- her mouth moved as if to say something, but only a weak croak came out. The sound vaguely sounded like she was calling out for him...

James had her in his arms and was dashing through the small house towards the floo before she could manage to find her voice again, scrambling to find them help.

"We'll get you to St.Mungos, just hold on a second, alright? You'll be okay." He swore. Swore for the both of them- he needed to believe it too.

Thankfully, Healers were on them as soon as James burst into the place, not wasting any time when they saw the state she was in. The older healer there was crystal clear: James wasn't allowed to follow, he'd only get in their way...

Good... Even if there was nothing more he wanted to do than to stay, there still was something else he needed to take care of.

The last thing he did before apparating himself to 4 Privet Drive was to order a volunteer nurse he recognized as one of the Order's youngest members to call Remus: Their plan had failed spectacularly. He needed reinforcement. The kid was obviously confused but was polite or intimidated enough not to question him...

The rest of the night was an unspeakable mess.

* * *

Muggle Law Enforcement was already at the scene by the time he reached Petunia's home.

Dozens of vehicles of all kind were parked all around the street, the perimeter around the house was blocked- neighbours were standing on their porches or at their windows, already gossipping away, no one could get in or out of the scene without authorization- the house itself was like a beehive, people in uniform were rushing in and out without pause, discussing with each other and sharing notes, and- oh... From where he was, James could now perceive a young lady, in the same dark uniform as the others around her, lying motionless with her face pressed against the pavement. It wasn't too difficult to guess what happened to her...

Unwilling to linger on that view for longer than necessary, James steeled himself and neared the crowd, ignoring the way his guts twisted at the thought of what he might find. Most people didn't even notice he was there, and the few who did chose to not pay him any mind as long as he didn't get too close to the house. Good. He didn't need to deal with them as well.

He was racking his brains trying to think of where to begin his search when he heard a painfully familiar ear-piercing shriek coming from one vehicle in particular. It was one of the white ones, with a red stripe and Ambulance written in bold letters on its side. The shriek was soon followed by wails. James elbowed his way there without hesitation, before anyone could even think of intercepting him.

Upon getting to the white automobile, he found Petunia hysterically shouting at a poor man dressed in white. She then tried to lunge at James when she saw him standing there- lucky for him, the man in white didn't let her, holding her back as gently as he could and sternly attempting to talk her down. You could feel that he'd been at it for a while now.

A low sound caught his attention, and inside the white vehicle, with two other people, were the ones he was looking for. He could have cried. For the first time since all this started, he felt like he was breathing again, a weight eased off his chest: They were alive.

* * *

Aurors and members of the Order ended up arriving while James was answering questions from two of the people dressed in dark blue. Just when he was starting to think these two would never let him leave with his boys, too.

A group of Aurors made sure to obliviate any and all the potential witnesses, unwilling to take any unnecessary risk: this included the officers, healers, neighbours, adults and children alike... And Petunia. James did try to dissuade them from touching her, she already knew about the wizarding world after all-but none of these brutes would allow themselves to be swayed. She was forced to give a testimony and was then made to forget everything. Everything about this evening and everything about the twins. As far as she was aware: she didn't talk to Lily in years and her husband simply went missing. And no: the Potters weren't allowed to tell her a word about this case. Lily would be enraged...

A second group took care of the scene and the corpses: three in total without counting Vernon. The three officers who were unlucky enough to get on the site early, when neighbours called them because of the commotion. James was almost certain he heard two Aurors complaining about needing to take care of the deads' families... Better not to think too hard about what that entailed.

From the brief description Petunia gave and the wand that was found with one of the detectives, the Aurors were able to conclude that the attacker was most likely the Dark Lord himself. He, or at least his body, was nowhere to be found, however, even though the Aurors and the Order members present spent a great portion of the night looking high and low for him and his accomplice.

By the time the third group finished questioning James, it was early morning, and the sun was just barely peeking out the horizon. Obviously, he didn't have anything of great interest to say to them, so this was all a huge waste of time for everyone involved. When that much became clear, one of the Aurors volunteered to escort him and the twins to St.Mungos for an emergency checkup.

Nothing was amiss with Daniel. He was just afraid still and exhausted, but that was natural with what he just went through. This was a relief. It seemed that the Dark Lord never even managed to get to him at all. The enchantment on him was intact, left completely untouched. Harry on the other hand...

Harry was fine. He wasn't injured. That was only because the enchantment saved him, taking most of the blow just so it could hurl it back at the caster, just as intended. The one thing proving that anything happened to him at all was the horrendous lightning-shaped scar now on his forehead... James could live with that... especially considering what could've happened...

So his children were alive and healthy, and as far as people knew: He who shall not be named didn't survive the encounter.

Now all he needed was for his wife to wake up.

* * *

Somehow, after that nightmare of a night, things slowly got better. There were still some ups and downs, but nothing as disastrous as what occurred during that one night...Of course, at first, there were more downs than ups, for example:

Sirius came back right after hearing about what happened. The first thing he tried to do was to go after whoever tried to hurt his loved ones, even if they were most likely already dead. He even tried to curse Snape when he first saw him, believing that the guy had something to do with the whole occurrence: The man had to tell his story three times under three different types of truth serums before Sirius accepted that he could be telling the truth, and even then, he didn't fully believe him.

No, that only came when they discovered that no one could find Wormtail. He somehow managed to get away and escape, because of course, he would! And of course, it wasn't too much of a stretch to think that he could be the accomplice who followed the Dark Lord to the Dursley's.

Clearly, Sirius went from furious to murderous upon learning about this, and it didn't make the task of calming him down any easier. James and Remus only succeeded in doing so when the latter assured that it was better for Sirius to stick around to help protect Lily and the kids- after all, who was to say that Death Eaters wouldn't go for a second attack? Right? So Sirius stuck around, just in case another attempt on his godson's and nephew's lives was made.

Then, there was that the Order obviously knew about their plan now, and just as they should have expected: James and the others were scolded by Dumbledore himself. For at least two hours, they had to hear about how they should have talked to them, and that their plan was foolish, and that the Order and Aurors would have been more than enough to protect them if they felt that unsafe and that yada-yada. That was the one time James was happy that Lily wasn't awake. At least she didn't have to go through such a humiliating talk... It was like James was a mere teen all over again. How did the old man always manage to sound so patronizing no matter what?

* * *

Lily awoke five entire days after she was first admitted to St.Mungos. Since she seemed to recover at an incredible pace, and since she clearly wasn't a fan of being bedridden, she was then discharged the next morning. A few days after that, the war was officially announced as over, the Dark Lord was dead and therefore his side lost. Death Eaters started getting arrested left and right soon after the announcement was made, too.

Neither James nor his wife was that naive, they knew full well that it could start all over again at any time, but at least they could have a break for now.

For the first time in nearly a year, it was safe for them to step foot into their own home. For the first time in nearly a year, they could walk outside without having to fear for their lives. For the first time in nearly a year, they didn't have to worry about their babies' lives being in danger: They were finally free!

* * *

Their baby boy was considered a national hero now, too. Known in the entirety of the Wizarding World for killing the Dark Lord. That was mostly fine... Well... The Potters had to fight tooth and nail so people wouldn't start selling _merchandise_ with their son's face on it. This was a pain and slightly freaky to deal with, but they still managed well enough.

Also: The Daily Prophet's "journalists" tended to follow them around a lot nowadays, but they were rather easy to avoid after a while. So yeah. Mostly fine.

* * *

Lily never got all of her powers back. The good news was that it was still there, diminished as it was. This alone gave her the strength to bounce back and to keep going. She started to teach herself how to fight without using her magic at all, taking to fight with blades of all kinds and her body- she got quite good at it quite fast too...

When James finally asked, she said that the lack of magic allowed her to understand that she should never have relied on it so much all her life and that she was going to change that now. He was glad for her.

However, he hated "helping her" with her training. It usually meant that he wasn't allowed to use magic, and that meant that he'd end up on the ground with his entire body hating him... At least now he knew some moves of his own, that couldn't hurt.

* * *

After a year and a half, Lily ended up getting bored with doing "nothing all day but fooling around..." Not that James could blame her for that. Life got quite stale quite quickly when you were so used to fighting in a merciless war. James himself was getting restless. His wife ended up getting so bored in fact that one day, she brought up an idea: why wouldn't they open a shop of their own? Even though James still had more than enough money to allow them to live in more than stellar conditions. Just to keep themselves busy.

Their Apothecary and tea house opened for the first time a few months after that conversation, and it got rather popular in less than two years! It was nice to see his Lily being so proud of herself.

* * *

Nothing else happened for a few more years... James liked it.

* * *

  
Peaceful years passed in a flash, his little guys grew up in the blink of an eye, and now...

"Dad! Mum! What are you doing!? We're gonna be late!"

"Yeah! If you don't hurry it up we're leaving with Uncles Siri and Moony! At least _they're_ ready!"

Now... now his boys had a train to catch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promised that Lily would live. I never said she would make it out in one piece. But hey: At least she didn't let it stop her! 
> 
> And this!... Is the last chapter where Harry and Dan will be babies, as you may have guessed. Next chapter, we're ten years in the future and following the Potter twins as they go to Hogwart for the first time!  
> Chaos will ensue.  
> See you next week and as always: thank you if you're still reading, hope you enjoyed the chapter!


End file.
